Life has changed for the Doudna kids, but it goes on. Here's how it went until about 2013.

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

8/7/07 Wrung out

No kids today, but what a waste. Reeling under the migraine headache, and from being woken up out of sound sleep last night by intense searing stabbing pain behind my right eye (the so-called "icepick" variant of migraines).

My own compulsion didn't help matters. I made myself go running today after Gabriel's swim lesson, knowing this would be the only chance I'd have all day. And, I took a long, hard route -- too hard. I felt beat up. The uphills were brutal, with every muscle screaming, lactic acid coursing through every limb, barely able to lift my feet for each step. But the uphill effort obliterated other pains: the pounding headache, stitches, sleepiness, all which returned in force on the downhills. Yet I still loved being out there, all 7-1/2 miles of it.

After the long, very hard run, I picked up a yummy salad and a few other things at Whole Foods, then rewarded myself with a long hot bath, and then a long nap, after which I made some hot coffee and dug into my hard-won salad. It wasn't until 3pm that I finally sat down in the office to get to work. By then, I was in no mood to shop around for home equity lines of credit. So I updated my kitchen wish list instead.

Tonya had a tough time with Katrina today. Poor baby's tummy seems a little upset, so she used up all the diapers I'd brought, and then some of other babies'. Katrina likes looking at the bathtub as it's filling up, but tonight she was crying because of a resulting diaper rash.I tried to get a happy picture of her, but the best I could do was to not show her face. Still, this is interesting -- she's inherited Mom's short legs!

Gabriel did great at his swim lesson again this morning. His teacher told me he's about to get bumped up a level, to a "red" ribbon. She laughed when I told her about last Saturday's new swim lesson, in which he was pulled off the side of the pool in a careful circle by a teacher going "whee!"

I realized today that now that Gabriel is old enough, swim lessons really do contribute to his water safety. I'm not sure when exactly the corner was turned, but it's not just for fun anymore. There's still a great deal of risk, some directly as a result of swim lessons: overconfidence, getting in over his head. But at this point, he's safer in a backyard pool than a kid who can't swim, perhaps even safer than a kid who depends on flotation devices. Which, according to various lifeguards and other water-safety sources, aren't always dependable. Better than nothing if you can't swim, but not as good as being able to swim. (In a pool that is; ocean and boat safety are a whole other matter.)

Even Julian is swimming well enough that I think his skill might possibly be a positive factor in a water emergency. Katrina, of course, swims only for fun and comfort in the water, so far. I'm looking forward to the boys starting swim lessons together (at the same time that is) at DACA on Saturdays starting in September.

I feel like I've been run over by a steamroller today. And I did it to myself. No running tomorrow, but no childcare either. Oh please, please, no migraine either. It subsided tonight, but I can feel flickers of it, like a thunderstorm taking a break before the next surge of lightning strikes.